Crackpots - General FAQ

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C R A C K P O T S
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Atari 2600
FAQ, Version 1.0
Last Updated - 17/01/2004
By Crazyreyn (crazyreyn_faqs@hotmail.com)
Copyright (c)2003 Matthew Reynolds. All rights reserved.
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INTRODUCTION
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Hello and welcome to the Crackpots FAQ. This handy text document will tell
you how to play this game, the insect patterns, and hints and tips. I am
playing this game from the Activision Anthology on the PlayStation 2, and I am
hoping that the version that I am using is the same as the normal one that was
released.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1. Version History
2. Game Overview
3. Hints and Tips
4. Conclusion and Special Thanks
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1. VERSION HISTORY
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| Version 1.0 - 17/01/2004 |
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The first complete version of this FAQ. Everything is complete.
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2. GAME OVERVIEW
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This section is just a look over all things in the game, such as how to play
it, the insect patterns and the controls.
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Story
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This is the story of the game (well, what there is of it) taken straight from
the manual -
We're infested! A bug barrage is swarming out of the sewer, chomping away at
every building in town. Entire neighbourhoods are now crumb piles! Over in
Brooklyn, Patsy, the rooftop gardener, is defending his beloved building with
his only weapon - potted petuios. Be a good neighbour. Help him take potshots
at the insect invaders.... Quick! When too many bugs crawl into the windows,
they'll start eating you out of house and home!
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Game Types
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There are two game types available -
Game 1 - One Player
Game 2 - Two Player
In two player, you will be taking turns.
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Controls
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Joystick - Move Patsy
Fire Button - Push Flowerpot
Note that you have to be behind the flowerpot to push it off the building.
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Playing the Game
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The aim of the game is to stop the insects crawling into the building through
the windows at the top. They will appear from the sewer at the bottom left,
crawl up the building and into the window. You stop them by dropping flowerpots
onto them. They come in waves - black, then blue, red and green. This then
repeats with the waves getting faster and faster. There are 12 bugs per wave.
Six bonus bugs are shown at the bottom of the screen at the start of each wave.
When a bug enters a window, one of these bonus bugs are taken away. If all 6
bonus bugs disappear then you cannot push pots off no longer and at the end of
the wave a layer of the building is taken away, making the building shorter in
height. You will then repeat that wave again at a slower pace. At the end of
the wave the remaining bonus bugs are worth 200 points each and are added to
your score. If 6 layers are taken off, then the game finishes.
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Insect Patterns
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There are four colour waves - black, blue, red and green. Each colour has a
different point amount for defeating them.
Black - 10 points
Blue - 20 Points
Red - 30 Points
Green - 40 Points
You will also get a bonus at the end of the wave for the bonus bugs you have
intact. You will receive 200 points a bug. Nice!
Each colour insect has its own pattern that it crawls up the building with.
Here are some diagrams showing the movements - the === are windows, the O is
the insect, _ is the sidewalk and the | / \ characters are the movements.
===
=== - This is one window. Three is displayed per diagram.
Black -
=== === === The insect moves from the sidewalk straight up to the window
=== === === above.
O
|
|
|
_____|_____
Blue -
=== === === The insect moves from the sidewalk up and zig zags slightly
=== === === to the window directly above it. These are the easiest waves
O as they are the same as black insects, but slower.
\
/
/
_____\_____
Red -
=== === === The insect moves diagonally two windows from the position it
=== === === started from. These are the hardest in my opinion to take on
O as you will need to learn the speed of the pot falling so you
\ can hit them earlier. It is easiest to hit them when they are
\ about to enter the window.
\
_________\_
Green -
=== === === The insect zigzags to the left then right, entering the window
=== === === above where is started from. Just remember when they started
O from, so you can stay above that window and drop a pot just
/ before they enter a window (this is the easiest way).
/
\
_____\_____
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3. HINTS AND TIPS
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? PRACTICE!! This is much required so you can learn the speed of Patsy and how
fast the flowerpots drop off the buildings, so you can make more appropriate
judgements.
? Try and hit the insects while they are on the sidewalk, or even better, as
they are immerging from the sewer. If you are over the sewer, then drop a
few pots there, and with some luck, you may hit some insects just as they
appear.
? Look at the Insect Patterns above to see how the bugs move and some tips to
take them down.
? The Red and Green insects are easiest to hit just before they enter the
window.
? Later, when the insects speed up, don't aim to get all the insects, but
concentrate on an area of a few windows, otherwise you simply don't have
time. Remember that you need 7 out of the 12 in the wave to continue without
losing a layer, so as long as you get most of them covered you should be
alright.
? Try and keep as many layers of the building intact for as long as possible -
this will help later when the insects get fast!
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4. CONCLUSION AND SPECIAL THANKS
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That's just about it, folks. I hope that this document has been of aid in
one form or another, and that it has been easy to use. If you could, please
either ask me questions, suggestions, comments or contributions at
crazyreyn_faqs@hotmail.com. Also could you rate this FAQ so I could get some
feedback. Thank you for reading.
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By Crazyreyn (crazyreyn_faqs@hotmail.com)
Copyright (c)2004 Matthew Reynolds. All rights reserved.
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